ITHACA, MI —When former Michigan State University quarterback Ryan VanDyke returned from Colorado in 2010 to attend graduate school at MSU and learn to be a football coach, his first pupil was Ithaca junior quarterback Travis Smith.

VanDyke was approached by Smith's father and grandfather about mentoring the young quarterback, who came in as a freshman on an Ithaca team that won the 2010 state title behind Central Michigan-bound quarterback Alex Niznak.

"It was that summer I crossed paths with (Smith's) grandpa and dad and they asked if I could come to Ithaca and work with him," VanDyke said. "I had no idea what I was getting into.

"But I wanted to be a coach and this was my first assignment."

VanDyke, who quarterbacked the Spartans in 2000 and 2001 and now serves as an assistant coach at his hometown Marshall High School, finally got to see his student in action at Friday's Division 6 second round football playoff game in Ithaca.

Smith didn't disappoint his teacher, completing 24 of 35 passes for 343 yards and five touchdowns and 86 rushing yards and another touchdown in the Yellowjackets 49-14 win over visiting Hemlock.

Ithaca, which has won 39-straight games and two straight state titles — including the title Smith led the Yellowjackets to as a starter last season — advances to host the regional title game next Friday. Ithaca (11-0) meets the winner of Saturday's Millington-Montrose game.

"There's no question in my mind that Travis is ready for (Division 1 football)," said the 32-year-old Van Dyke, who took over the Spartans offense from the graduated Bill Burke in 2000. "He'll continue to grow and the best thing about him is he wants this.

"When you win 39 straight games, you can become complacent. But he pushes on to get better. He wants to be in that upper echelon of quarterbacks."

After the Yellowjackets beat Constantine 42-14 for the state title last November, Smith and his teammates were back in the weight room that next Monday. The summer offseason was anything but a summer off as Smith and his top wide receiver — Jared Evers — attended 10 different football camps together.

MSU quarterbacks Kirk Cousins, Van Dyke, Jeff Smoker and Andrew Maxwell, along with Central Michigan's Niznak, worked with Smith while the Yellowjackets receivers took pointers from the MSU receivers. Van Dyke has given him the most valuable advice.

"He just says to move the chains," Smith said. "To work on the task at hand."

Ithaca trailed after one quarter with Hemlock, surrendering a long touchdown pass to trail 7-6. Smith went to work in the second quarter, leading the Yellowjackets back to a 28-7 halftime lead with three touchdown passes. Smith completed 17 of 22 passes in the first half for 254 yards and four touchdowns.

His most impressive play came on a scramble where Smith continued to elude defenders and buy time as he rolled to his left. He made three defenders miss, changed directions and rolled right scrambling for what felt like a minute before delivering a first down pass down the middle of the field with poise.

"I think everybody got to see how truly special a player like Travis is," Ithaca coach Terry Hessbrook said. "He makes plays, handles the pressure and delivers strikes. The biggest thing he had to work on this year was moving in the pocket and keeping his eyes downfield.

"We want him to pull it down and run sometimes because he's so dangerous. But he's really gotten better at scrambling and looking for the open receiver."

Major college programs have taken note. While Smith can increase his exposure with another run to the state title game at Ford Field, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska and Cincinnati has already expressed interest in the 6-foot-2, 200-pound right hander.

"It's something I can sit and wait on," Smith said of his college suitors. "I'd like to sign early, but we'll see."

Travis Smith credits his father for a lot of his quarterback skills. His father, Brett Smith, played baseball at Central Michigan and started to work on Travis Smith's footwork and throwing style in fourth grade. It's a work ethic Travis Smith carries to this day.

"My dad really gave me a good push and it's stuck with me," Travis Smith said. "In the offseason, my whole life is about speed and agility. I've got to work on my feet. That's very important as a quarterback. There's so many drills and doing squats really helps on my endurance. "That helped tonight."